Magical 'new' carpets: Gabbeh rugs from the East have carved a lasting new niche in U.S. home decor

Diane Baltozer

Monday

Sep 24, 2007 at 12:01 AMSep 24, 2007 at 2:53 AM

Gabbeh rugs are relatively new-to-the-U.S. oriental rug that bridge many decor styles and tastes - and are especially attractive to those who love modern decor and may have wrinkled their noses at the idea of decorating with a traditional oriental rug. Although they first originated in Iran ages ago, Gabbehs aren’t your grandma’s oriental rugs – and have been hot news in U.S. homes in recent years after being relatively unknown.

Creating a warm and unique environment often involves incorporating tastes you’ve developed over your whole lifetime, not just what’s in style today. But if there’s quite a stretch between your taste and today’s tastes, or you’re trying to decorate for more than one family member, not to worry. Professionals can help you create a unique environment that can bridge cultures, varying tastes, space and even time almost magically – sometimes starting from right underfoot.

Decorating professionals often start "from the floor up," says Mahmud Jafri, owner of Dover Rug stores in Natick and Hanover. That’s because carpeting and rugs cover so much territory visually - and because quality rugs and carpeting are usually greater monetary investments than many other color-decor elements such as drapes, upholstery fabrics and accessories. The latter can be changed less expensively and more easily. Plus, rugs and other carpeting set a definite mood in a room, and people often have very definite likes and dislikes regarding rug and carpet designs, says Jafri, an expert in oriental rugs in particular.

Not your grandma’s orientals

But a relatively new-to-the-U.S. type of oriental rug bridges many decor styles and tastes - and is especially attractive to those who love modern decor and may have wrinkled their noses at the idea of decorating with a traditional oriental rug.

Gabbeh oriental rugs, though they first originated in Iran ages ago, aren’t your grandma’s oriental rugs – and have been hot news in U.S. homes in recent years after being relatively unknown. They had been under a general U.S. embargo on everything from Iran. But when a few items were removed from the embargo in March, 2000 – oriental rugs, caviar, and dried fruit and nuts – Gabbehs found a new, welcoming audience and market here. But their appeal is not just because they are less-known and therefore "different" to the Western eye these days. They also can be more easily updated or adapted for U.S. and changing tastes than traditional orientals and have sparer designs that appeal to modern tastes. And today they are also produced in a variety of other Eastern countries. So they have quickly carved a whole new niche in the oriental and overall rug market – and in many U.S. homeowners’ homes.

Quality Gabbehs aren’t any different from other oriental rugs in their production, Jafri and other experts will tell you. It’s their design that’s significantly different. Like most traditional oriental rugs (called "Persian-style"), Gabbehs are hand-hand-knotted from hand-dyed wool. And no two are exactly alike. They are individual artworks created by carpet artists who put their own creativity and imagination into each rug, says Jafri.
The difference in Gabbehs is hinted at by their name, which means coarse or coarse-woven. The wool used in Gabbehs comes from sheep with wool a bit heavier and coarser than that used in Persian-style orientals. So Gabbehs in turn tend to be a bit heavier than traditional-oriental rugs, and "are cut with a thicker pile" than other orientals, says Kevin McPherson, the globe-trotting owner of Mohr & McPherson in Cambridge, which imports exotic furnishings from around the globe and accessories, including Gabbehs and other orientals rugs.

‘Fashion-market’ Gabbeh artistry

But the main difference between these handmade fiber artworks and traditional oriental rugs is that Gabbehs are considered "fashion-market" orientals, as opposed to traditional-market orientals. That’s because their designs seem to appeal to up-to-the-minute tastes while traditional orientals are often more popular with customers with more traditional tastes and furnishings, say Jafri and McPherson. Oriental rug-shoppers seem to fall into one of the two categories: traditional Persian-style-oriental rug-lovers and Gabbeh-lovers, Jafri says.

Gabbehs themselves also come in two general styles that appeal to many and work in many environments. Both generally tend to have fields of background color less interrupted by figures in the design than Persian-style rugs. The Gabbeh background colors are often, as in other orientals, made up of a mix of wool colors to create a wide ranges of hues. And both quality Persian-style orientals and Gabbehs boast "abrash" - color-shading/variations within the same color field that shows the rugs are handmade. "Abrash" shading is deliberate and subtle in quality rugs and is one thing that distinguishes genuine orientals from machine-made knockoffs. It is considered appealing and artistic.

Any figure-designs on Gabbehs tend to be positioned more assymetrically against the background than in traditional orientals – often giving Gabbehs a more open, modern or playful feeling than traditional orientals, which usually have beautifully elaborate, virtually all-over, intertwined designs and often precisely repeated designs. "Tribal"-style Gabbehs usually have more figures - animals, plants, trees or other symbols from the East. The symbols "are common to many cultures," so appeal to many, said Jafri. Often seen on Gabbehs, for instance, are animals, plants, trees, and other figures. Some are variations of traditional Eastern figures, and symbols such as trees of life – "common to Christian, Muslim and Jewish cultures" – evil eye symbols "common to Greek, Islamic, and Turkish cultures" - and others. But the figures are chosen for their artistic feeling – and they are often rendered in a very "new" and "modern," even "fun and funky" and somewhat abstract style that’s modern in feeling and easily distinguished from the very elaborate designs of traditional orientals, says Jafri.

Youthful, energetic appeal

The recent popularity of Gabbehs may partly be the result of their being newer to the Western eye and market. But Gabbehs also are often designed, says Jafri, "by younger rug artists starting out in the designing field" who are filled with creative, new, up-to-date ideas that may appeal to a new generation of buyers. Young designers of oriental rugs are often "cutting their teeth in the field of design" on Gabbehs when they start out. Early on in their careers, "we test their mettle," skills-wise, on Gabbehs, says Jafri, whose company orders and imports its rugs primarily from its own designers in the East. Rug making and the rug market "is a lot like fashion" and that’s especially true of Gabbehs, Jafri says, because the Gabbeh "is an environment where the (rug) artist can separate himself from the pack" to design something different yet still made in the oriental rug tradition of hand-dyeing and handknotting.

Even after honing their design skills on the often less-elaborately-figured Gabbehs, some designers choose to continue designing Gabbehs because they do not restrict the designers to the very traditional designs found in Persian-style rugs. Skilled Gabbeh designers are equal in skill to traditional Persian-style designers, they are just artists more drawn to creating one style or the other.

The difference between the styles is usually apparent even to Westerners almost at first sight – it’s like the difference between seeing a piece of modern art versus seeing elaborate antique mosaics. Gabbeh designs can look more modern, like rugs with touches of pointillism to them – or have the playful, energetic look of a very creative child’s drawing.

And some of Dover Rug’s Gabbehs, in fact, come from the creative minds of children. Jafri, who harks originally from Pakistan, has long offered outreach education programs about Eastern culture and art in local U.S. elementary schools because he loves kids and introducing his art-filled heritage to those who know little about the Middle East and Far East. He periodically travels to third-grade classes, while they’re studying the Middle East in school, to talk about its culture, art and history. In the course of his photo-filled presentations, he introduces the kids to the prominent and ancient art of rug-making, outlining the process from its sheepshearing first step to the design stage and the art of handknotting them. Jafri’s programs often wrap up with fields trips to Dover Rug where the kids can see the final product of the rug-makers’ art.

"They get really excited to visit and see the rugs," said Jafri. So excited, in fact, that Jafri one day encouraged the young students to try their hands at drawing their own rug designs. He didn’t expect it to be more than a fun activity, but he so liked some of the motifs the third-graders came up with that he has since had some of the motifs tweaked and adapted and actually incorporated into some rugs. Some of his student-visitors’ motifs can now be found in some rugs at his Natick Dover Rug showroom.

The fun, youthful quality of most Gabbehs also seems to excite a clear segment of adults looking to decorate their homes, say Jafri and Kevin McPherson. People who buy Gabbehs buy them not mainly because they’re rugs with tradition-steeped designs and value, but because "when they see a large Gabbeh, especially, they fall in love and have to have it and didn’t ever imagine buying an oriental rug" until then -- because they thought Persian-style traditional orientals were the only oriental rug styles and not to their taste, says McPherson. Gabbeh buyers "find Gabbehs quite unusual…and it thrills them because many fans of Gabbehs are not big-big fans of traditional oriental rugs. And the color palettes of them (Gabbehs) can be magnificent, like something more contemporary and freeform," says McPherson.

And Gabbehs go well with contemporary furniture – and with a lot more, add both Jafri and McPherson.

With Gabbehs, the "intention of it all is to keep it simple, fresh" in design, and the appeal of them is "the ability to change colors and styles and designs" quickly to better suit Western tastes or the rug’s surroundings, says Jafri. Persian-style rugs’ elaborate, intertwined designs carry on longstanding designs which are rarely varied radically -- and the traditional rug usually sets the tone for a whole room. Gabbeh designs, on the other hand, "are more freeflowing and often assymetric," says Jafri, and as a result work well with a variety of modern colors, furniture styles, etc.

"It’s a limited genre, not mainstream," said Jafri, of Gabbehs. But it’s "a genre that has been gaining popularity in the United States now, although it has been around for centuries. Patrons of this style "either are first-time buyers who are afraid of the ornate oriental or its colors, or they’re seasoned buyers who are looking not for your conservative, politically-correct dream" – they’re customers "who don’t want to be part of the crowd. They like the unpredictable artistic integrity" of the Gabbeh that breaks out of the tradition of other beautiful, and tradition-steeped Persian-style oriental rug designs, says Jafri.

The look of Gabbehs is "a more minimalist look" that goes well with minimalist "modern" decor and furniture but with many other environments, too.

"I’ve seen them used in kids rooms," as well as elsewhere in homes, said McPherson.

And although the "real craze" for Gabbehs "was probably at its peak about four years ago," said Jafri, Gabbehs are here to stay now. They have "carved a new niche" in the U.S. market and Western decor, say both Jafri and McPherson. They are still, at the moment, creating stronger interest than traditional Persian-style orientals, which tend to be popular when traditional furniture is popular. Gabbehs, more like other "fashion-market" rugs, are popular whenever less traditional decor is in style. But orientals of either kind never entirely go out of style, either, say both experts.

The price of Gabbehs may also have appeal to today’s decorators and homeowners, older or young. Prices for Gabbehs can range "from a few dollars a square foot to $90 a square foot" for the best or most popular looks, says McPherson. But Gabbehs still generally "cost less than most traditional-design" orientals of the same quality level, partly because they are newer to the West than traditional orientals, said Jafri. Yet the quality of good Gabbehs equals the quality of quality of Persian-style handmade orientals.

‘Best of both worlds’ and many venues

And Gabbehs are not just being produced primarily in one Eastern country, anymore, so they are more and more available today. So "they’re the best of both worlds," East and West, in many ways, says Jafri.

Gabbehs also work decor-wise in many worlds and even beyond the home. In the East, just like Persian-style orientals, they’ve served as rugs and floors and tent walls and wraps and prayer rugs. Likewise, in the West today, Gabbehs are no longer confined just to the floor.

Sometimes Gabbehs are hung on walls as art, says Jafri. And in corporate headquarters. And McPherson says he has seen "some tiny ones we have – that are like a foot-and-a-half by three feet "– used something like the way they’ve been used in the Middle East, at times, "as cushions on chairs," not just as floor rugs.

But Westerners are also using Gabbehs in daring ways their Middle Eastern originators might never have dreamed of, flying carpet tales notwithstanding. Sure, where Gabbehs and other orientals come from, they have been toted everywhere, rolled up for easy travel, unrolled for traditional prayers in the desert sands, used as animal saddles and more. But here in the West, " I’ve even sold some small Gabbehs that people use in their autos on the floor," said McPherson.

Picture that: A Gabbeh in the convertible, a caramel macchiato, and the iPod cranking. Gabbehs have come a long way, baby, and have taken oriental rugs into new realms.

The care and feeding of fine Gabbehs

Gabbehs and other oriental rugs, particularly all-wool orientals, are not particularly hard to care for and are tougher than their exotic origins and high-quality reputations may make you think. But because of the beauty and traditional lasting monetary value of orientals, they should be cared for regularly in your home to preserve their beauty and value – and professionally cleaned every three or four or at least five years, say the experts.

Regular vacuuming and periodic professional cleaning will get rid of embedded dirt or dust particles that can cut into and eventually break down any natural fabric fibers.
And Gabbehs, like other wool orientals, also usually can be doused immediately with water if you spill something on them, then the splash often easily can be dabbed out with a towel. (But consult an oriental rug professional before the situation arises for future reference – silk-wool-blend orientals and even all-wool orientals can have different care requirements). Dover Rug has a very informative Web site with information on the styles, history, care and feeding of oriental rugs. And very often, you’ll find, the best oriental rug stores often also offer knowledgeable, professional cleaning of oriental rugs or referrals to those expert in cleaning them.

And if you’re one of those people who thinks a petite little Gabbeh or traditional oriental is just the thing for your Lexus or Mercedes – or to jazz up your more mundane jalopy – switch to something else on the car floor in winter, advises Kevin McPherson of Mohr & McPherson in Cambridge. You don’t want to track the very harsh chemicals in New England’s snowy winter road-treatments onto your oriental.

Remember, oriental rugs are woven from what’s originally the thick, soft coats of living sheep – and have traveled thousands of miles to beautify your environment. Treat them like your favorite living beings and they’ll offer you beauty and comfort for a long time.

There are Dover Rug stores on Rte. 9 in Natick and Rte. 53 in Hanover. Mohr & McPherson's warehouse store is on Moulton St., Cambridge.

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